Family Health Essay

1434 Words6 Pages
Running head: Family Health Assessment

Family Health Assessment
Grand Canyon University: Family Center Health Promotion NRS-429V
August 8th, 2012

Family Health Assessment Everyday changes in healthcare make family assessment more important as ever as a tool for health care providers seeking to assist the family move themselves toward higher levels of wellness. A family system is a group of individuals and the pattern of relationships between them (Servonsky & Gibbons, 2005). The family defines its views of health, makes decisions regarding health practices, and is the most frequent provider of health care to family members. In 1987, Marjory Gordon challenged professional nurses to adopt a standard nursing framework to guide data collection in the assessment phase of the nursing process (Nettle, et al, 1993). Gordon delineated a typology of 11 health patterns as a universal framework for nurses. Each of Gordon’s 11 functional health patterns aids in the organization of the family assessment (Edelman & Mandle, 2010). The patterns form a standardized format for assessment using an approach with emphasis on developmental stages and risk factors.
Gordon’s 11 Functional Health Patterns Gordon as a guide for establishing a comprehensive nursing database proposed the following 11 health patterns. These patterns include health- perception and health-management, nutrition and metabolism, elimination, activity and exercise, cognitions and perception, sleep and rest, self-perceptions and self-concept, roles and relationships, sexuality and reproduction, coping and stress tolerance, and values and beliefs (Edelman & Mandle, 2010).
Family Assessment The family chosen for this my assessment is a nuclear family with two children. The children are a 12-year-old-female and a 6-year-old-male. The father is a 37-year-old who has worked as a stay at home
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